Most Important Treasure
by Yukirei
Summary: Written for Luffy's birthday. A story about the would be Pirate King and his most important straw hat.


**HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MONKEY D. LUFFY!**

Title: **Most Important Treasure  
**Fandom: One Piece  
Pairing(s): None  
Rating: G  
**Warning: Spoilers up to after Arabasta arc  
**Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of its characters. One Piece belongs to Oda Eiichiro-sensei. This is a non-profit fanfiction written by a fan, for the enjoyment of other fans.  
Author's notes: Probably takes place somewhere between Arabasta and Skypiea.  
Some lines have been taken from the One Piece manga (with reference to English and Chinese manga translations and anime subbed by Kaizouku Fansubs).

* * *

Mother Nature was a pirate's friend and his enemy. 

Out in the open sea, one was closest to nature, most vulnerable to its mood swings.

As Shanks knew when he refused to take Luffy with him.

When a storm raged as one did on a night as this - dark clouds looming menacingly overhead with excited sparks of lightning flickering within, waves rising to the heights of giants, ready to swallow whole all in its path, Nature in all its magnificent fury - the only thing a pirate could do was flee. Even the best navigator - and of course Nami was the best, because she was the navigator of the man who was going to be the Pirate King! - could not prevent a storm but merely steer clear of its irate path.

The wind howled as the needles of rain pelted the exposed deck of the Going Merry.

Nami snapped out brisk orders.

Chopper and Sanji wrestled with the steer as Zoro and Luffy drew in the sails and Usopp anxiously restrained several planks of wood that had burst out of their positions, with Robin's help.

Slowly but steadily, the Going Merry sailed away from the centre of the storm.

Luffy jumped to the deck, in good spirits despite the storm, having completed the task with the sail.

It was at that moment that a fierce wind chose to blow.

Snatching the straw hat from the top of the dark-haired boy's head. Tossing it, twirling it, throwing it further and further back into the storm.

_Mother Nature was a pirate's friend and his enemy._

Luffy's hand instinctively shot out.

It wasn't an unusual occurrence. Sometimes, a playful wind would steal Luffy's hat. Luffy always got it back.

But suddenly, unexpectedly, a huge wave crashed into the side of the Merry.

Luffy's hand jerked back. His fingers were centimetres from the straw hat.

_Out in the open sea, one was closest to nature, most vulnerable to its mood swings._

The ship tilted violently to its side. Luffy fell on his ass, arm snapping back into his shoulder. Nami clung tightly to the railing. Sanji was thrown against the door through which he had been exiting to the deck. Zoro slid across the deck and slammed into the mast.

Before the Merry could even right itself, Luffy had jumped back onto his feet, resolutely charging up the tilted deck, not caring that his sandals were slipping on the wet wood. At the edge, he leapt onto the railing and into the air, right arm shot out once more after the disappearing hat.

_As Shanks knew when he refused to take Luffy with him._

When Nami turned at the sound of the water-muffled footsteps as the ship swung itself back into equilibrium, it was this sight that she saw - Luffy in mid-air, arm stretched into the ever-darkness, nothing but merciless waves beneath him.

The cry rose in her throat as alarm widened her eyes.

_Luffy!_

Before her lips formed the word, the figure her eyes were affixed upon had dropped straight into the sea.

A streak of blue and black dashed across the deck, pausing only a split second for shoes to be kicked off before plunging into the dark waters after their idiot Captain.

Nami's cry was swallowed by the roaring thunder, the howling wind, the crashing waves. But as if sensing something amiss, the crewmembers inside the ship jerked their heads up.

**"LUFFY!"**

* * *

The brilliant rays of sun penetrated the puffy white clouds, reaching the calm sapphire sea below. 

It was as if the storm of the night before had never taken place, Nami thought as she stared out at the tranquil sea. White seabirds called cheerfully to each other as they soared overhead.

They had decided on their own, without Captain's orders, before Luffy even awoke, to turn back after the storm. They all understood, even if to varying extents, that the straw hat was something important to Luffy. It was necessary to go back, to at least _try_ to find it.

Nami's gaze turned to the figure sitting cross-legged on the Merry figurehead, gazing into the horizon. The absence of the straw hat was painfully apparent.

It was his most important treasure.

She recalled his words from their first meeting.

At the time, she had thought that it hid some precious gem or perhaps a treasure map. Because that was what she knew pirates meant when they spoke of 'treasure'. Or rather, what she had thought she knew.

She learnt, and later believed as she witnessed Luffy's ire when his hat was deliberately damaged, that it was a precious present from a friend.

It was his most important treasure.

She had never seen such an expression on Luffy's face as the one he had when he walked past her to the Merry figurehead.

When Nami thought of Luffy, Luffy would be grinning. He was always grinning, as if being a pirate was something he found so tremendously happy; though sometimes, it was annoying when one was exasperatingly trying to get a point across and he was suspiciously not paying attention. Or else, he would be nonchalantly relaxed. Or frowning when he tried to understand something that puzzled him, or sulking when Sanji refused to give him food as he demanded. But it wouldn't be long before he would be grinning again.

Sometimes, Luffy wouldn't be grinning or relaxed or frowning bemusedly or sulking. At these times, he would be serious, angry. When the people he knew and cared for were hurt, when he saw blatant displays of what he felt was wrong, Luffy would be angry. When Luffy was angry, he would do something about it. He would beat the wits out of the people who had caused the hurt, who had done the wrong. And then, he wouldn't be angry anymore.

But today, Luffy was not grinning, not relaxed, not frowning, not sulking, not angry. The expression on his face was foreign; it was the first time Nami had seen it since she met him. It was sadness. There was nowhere to channel the emotion - nothing to be angry against; because nature was nature, the storm of the previous night had fled and there was nothing left to beat senseless. There was nothing Luffy could do, aside from watch intently for a glimpse of the familiar yellow and red.

The reality of exactly how wrong the whole situation was was especially clear when Sanji called out that lunch was ready. Luffy usually perked up - brightened, practically to the point of dazzling - at the mention of food, and gomu-rocketed into the galley. Nami watched as Usopp called to Luffy after climbing down from the crow's nest, repeating that lunch was ready and Luffy turned to him blankly, nodding in response before sliding down to the deck and trudging towards the galley.

It was painful seeing Luffy like this. But Nami tried imagining how she would feel if Bellemere's mikan trees were destroyed, and guessed she could understand.

* * *

The weather thankfully remained pleasant during the next few days. They had began circling the area for a more comprehensive search, taking the circles wider each time. 

Unfortunately, Luffy's straw hat was still nowhere in sight.

Zoro continued swinging his weights and taking his naps, because there was nothing he could do to help. However, his eyes could be observed to occasionally dart toward their Captain on the figurehead as he went through his routine training.

Nami remained vigilant towards any possible change in weather in the highly unpredictable Grand Line, as was her duty as navigator. While looking at the skies, her gaze often shifted to the sea, for the tiny possibility that she might catch sight of something with her naked eye that the person on lookout had missed.

Usopp was often in the crow's nest, peering through his goggles and telescopic devices as far as he could. When he was not on the crow's nest, he was sitting by the Merry figurehead, trying to cheer Luffy up in the only way he knew how to - with amusing, exaggerated narrations, hands waggling animatedly, of the great adventures of Captain Usopp! And then, after some thought, he also included Captain Luffy in his tales.

Sanji continued his duties as the ship's cook. The only thing new was that at the times of the day when he served the ladies their usual drinks or snacks, he would have an extra snack for their Captain.

Among the Straw Hat Pirates, Chopper was probably the most miserable about Luffy's lost hat aside from Luffy himself. He had taken to sitting quietly beside Luffy, and when Usopp joined them with his stories, giggled at them, hoping that Luffy would laugh along.

One couldn't really tell what Robin thought of the whole affair. She didn't question the significance of the hat, nor did she complain about delaying their advance to search for it. She even offered to take turns with Usopp keeping a lookout on the crow's nest. Robin had a sharp eye, and her assistance was gladly accepted.

After lunch on the fourth day of their search, Sanji informed the rest of the crew sans Luffy, that their supplies might be running low and that he would be serving slightly smaller portions for their meals so that they could continue searching. They agreed unanimously. Chopper and Zoro were sent to the back of the Merry with fishing rods and a bucket of bait.

* * *

Luffy did not move from the Merry figurehead. 

When he stared into the blue sea, he remembered what Shanks had taught him about understanding the hardships of travelling on the ocean and the power of nature. He felt the breeze ruffle through his hair and shivered at the unfamiliar feeling.

Memories of the one year and few months in his childhood when Shanks and his pirate crew stopped at their port town flitted across his mind. Especially vivid were the memories of Shanks appearing to save him from a certain death under the foot of an impudent bandit, staring at the bloody stump of a left arm as waves rocked around the two of them and tears blurred his vision, and the day where Shanks and his crew departed, and he gave him his straw hat.

_I'll gather my own crew that'll not lose to yours and find the world's greatest treasure! No matter what, I'll become the Pirate King!_

I'll let you take care of this hat. It's my important hat... Some day, return it to me, when you become a great pirate.

When he looked up and saw the ball of fire that was the sun, he remembered meeting Ace at Arabasta. It was the brother he hadn't met for years, since Ace left their port town three years before him. When Luffy saw Ace, he remembered their hometown, the fun they had in their childhood, how they had fought and how Ace always won, even though Luffy was a rubber man, because Ace was strong.

Ace had given him a piece of paper. It was merely a blank piece of paper. But because Ace gave it to him, he would keep it; because Ace told him to always have it with him, he would listen and do so. That was why he had Nami sew that precious piece of paper into his most important straw hat.

You must keep that with you all the time... That little piece of paper will let us meet again.

_The next time we meet again, I'll be standing at the pirates' summit... Luffy, join me at this "summit"!_

A cool sensation suddenly pricked at his cheeks as the wind blew against him. Pushing the back of a finger against his cheek, he felt fading moisture.

Luffy realised that he was crying. It was something he had not done in years.

It held the paper Ace gave him, the paper that would let them meet once more. It held his promise to Ace - a promise that he would keep that paper on him, always - to Ace, his brother who he loved and admired.

And it was Shanks's most important hat. It was Shanks's hat - Shanks, who made him want to be a pirate, who made him understand that being a pirate was both a happy and dangerous thing. That was why it was his most important treasure. Before that hat, he had sworn to Shanks that he would gather his nakama and become a pirate, that he would become the Pirate King.

Luffy rubbed harder at the tears that continued to fall from his eyes.

* * *

As evening approached towards the end of the eighth day of searching and the sun dipped into the horizon, Luffy stood on the Merry figurehead and announced that they would give up their search. 

All movement ceased. All eyes were fixed on Luffy. In the silence, the only sound was that of the waves gently lapping at the sides of the Merry.

A little voice in Nami wanted to ask 'why', because she knew how important the straw hat was to Luffy and couldn't understand why he was giving up, even as another part of her agreed with his decision to give up the meaningless search that could go on forever.

"We're going on to the next island!" Luffy declared, jumping down from the Merry figurehead. As the soles of his sandals touched the deck, he looked towards the galley.

"SANJI! FOOD!"

Sanji calmly stopped the rubbery mass that propelled towards him with a raised foot.

"Dinner will be ready soon."

"I WANT MEAT!"

"No meat till the next island." Sanji turned into the galley and shut the door behind him. Behind the closed door, a small smile crept onto Sanji's lips as he walked to the stove.

Luffy turned, grinning broadly. "Then let's hurry to the next island!" He called out as he spotted his navigator, "Nami!"

Nami smiled widely. "Aye, Captain!"

She checked her log post, and then proceeded to give orders to change the direction of the Merry.

* * *

_

* * *

_

"Are you Straw Hat Luffy?"

It was two days since they had returned to course and were heading smoothly toward the next island, when they were signalled to stop by a passing pirate ship.

Luffy stared back seriously at the plump man whose body was as round as what he was wearing on his head - something that looked suspiciously like a giant golf ball.

"Yes, I am. Who are you?"

"I am Captain Kamer of the White Golf Pirates. I have something that you may be interested in."

"Oh, I see. What is it, Golf Ball-ossan?"

"Did you say I look like a golf ball?" Captain Kamer screamed, incensed.

"Captain, he's not saying that-"

"No. But that's true too."

The Captain of the White Golf Pirates turned red, the colour of his face starkly contrasting the white of his headpiece. He _hated _it when people made fun of his weight.

Quickly regaining composure, Captain Kamer raised his hand and the object in it.

Luffy positively lit up.

"This is your famous straw hat, isn't it?" Captain Kamer sneered. "Do you want it back?"

"Yes!" Luffy exclaimed joyfully.

"Wait a minute, how do we know that that is Luffy's straw hat?" Zoro questioned suspiciously.

"This hat flew over our ship one stormy night ten days ago, X kilometres south-west of here," one of Captain Kamer's crew said defensively, glaring at Zoro.

Zoro glared back at him impassively.

"That's pretty near where the storm hit us," Nami said softly.

"Give me my hat!" Luffy demanded.

"I'll give it back to you if you surrender your crew members to me in exchange," Captain Kamer responded squarely.

There was silence as the two pirate crews stared at each other. Behind Luffy stood his crew - Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Sanji, Chopper, Robin - his nakama, who he had set out to gather when he left his hometown; they were people with whom he had experienced the joys and dangers of life as a pirate. He had sworn to Shanks before that most important straw hat that he would gather a crew that wouldn't lose to his. This, was his crew.

"So, which do you want?" Captain Kamer smirked. "Do you want your straw hat or your nakama?"

Luffy stared at him, and then responded, as if it was the most natural reply in the world, "I WANT BOTH!"

Broad grins spread on five faces, a no-less triumphant smile on a sixth, as an arm stretched towards a shocked Captain Kamer, snatching the straw hat from his hand.

"Know the guy but don't know what he can do?" Nami smirked at the shock on the faces of the opposite crew.

The arm snapped back and after a check for any damage, confirming there was none and a quick feel that the piece of paper was still there, the precious straw hat was replaced once more on the head of wind-tousled dark hair. Luffy welcomed the familiar feeling.

"Wh-what are you!" Captain Kamer shouted, voicing the question in the minds of the rest of the White Golf Pirates' crewmembers.

Luffy grinned broadly, his grin radiating his joy. "I'm a rubber man, Monkey D. Luffy. The man who is going to become the Pirate King!"

* * *

Date started: 4 May 2006  
Date completed: 5 May 2006  
Last edited: 6 May 2006 


End file.
